The best way to self-publish your book is with SmashWordsIt costs nothing, and they don't try to upsell with
extra services.BUT you have to pay to have your book professionally
edited first,and create (or pay for) an excellent cover design.
Then you can upload your book in Word to Smashwords, and they create
the ebook in all formats, and distribute widely.

Red Tuque Books is a Canadian distributor for Canadian
small presses and self-published Canadian authors. The 40 page annual catalogue is compiled in the
spring, then printed and shipped tobookstores, libraries and schools in the fall.The online version of the last catalogue produced is
available for download from the website: www.redtuquebooks.caMewsings/Musingshas
been in the catalogue since 2013.

The New York Times reviews about 1% of the books that come out in
any given year.

Canadian authors now have an organization of agents to consult.
Collectively, they represent represent more than 1,000 writers
and illustrators, allowing authors to communicate with the majority
of agencies through one officially designated group when it comes to
industry issues. The Professional
Association ofCanadian Literary Agents will work closely
not only with book publishers but also with federal and provincial
governments, prize granting organizations, writers associations,
booksellers, literary festivals, review media, and educational institutions.

BOOKS that discuss
Publishing
Options

Terry Whalin is the author of more than 60 books from traditional
publishers, a former literary agent and still works as an
acquisitions editor. He points out that editors and publishers don't
read manuscripts; they want a solid proposal. Whalin's book, Book
Proposals that Sell, offers 21 secrets to writing a winning
proposal. He also offers courses and seminars to help you through the
process. Go to http://SimonTeakettle.com/nonfiction.htm

The Self Publisher's Ultimate Resource Guide lists
more than 850 curated and verified resources in 33 Categories,
compiled by Joel Friedlander and Betty Kelly Sargent. Endorsed by all
the top names in the field, including Dan Poynter, Joan Stewart and
Patricia Fry, the surtitle of this book describes it perfectly, as
every indie authors essential directory, to help you prepare,
publish, and promote professional looking books.Order from http://www.thebookdesigner.com/

Dan Poynters
Self-Publishing Manual is in its 16th printing. Poynter died
in 2015, but his last book was Volume 2 of the Manual, bearing
the subtitle, How to Write, Print and Sell Your Own Book Employing
the Latest Technologies and the Newest Techniques. It explains
how to write your book faster, publish it for less, discover more
economical ways to distribute your book, and earn more profit by
cutting out the middlemen. This book covers print books, e-books,
audiobooks, and others.

Author Jane Friedman offers a wide range of advice
and experience with all kinds of publishers:http://janefriedman.com

The Fine Print of Self-Publishing, by
Mark Levine,
which compares and ranks more than a dozen companies in this growing
field. Full review HERE.
This is an area where things change very quickly, companies are
purchased by others, terms change, and there are new additions all
the time. So you need to have the most current edition. The fourth
edition is out now. Mark has two other websites with useful info.
Start withwww.Go-Publish-Yourself.com.

Self Publishing: Writing A Book and
Publishing Books and eBooks For Yourself and Othersis a workbook containing 22 chapters of
detailed instructions and more than 140 screen shots illustrating
every step in the writing and self-publishing process. A. William
Benitez, whose company, Positive Imaging, LLC, offers writing,
publishing, distribution and web design services, has provided the
first clear, comprehensive guide I've come across. Best of all, he
describes how to use free and/or inexpensive software, offering
step-by-step instructions for using each one. Read my full review HERE.
There's also a complete description of the book, with ordering
information, at: http://selfpublishingworkbook.com
Benitez also offers a free self-publishing eCourse at:http://publishingsimplified.com/FreeSPCourse/SPeCourse2012.pdf

If you want to use Word to prepare a professionally-formatted book
for Amazon's CreateSpace, you might want to take a look at How to
Publish Your Book on CreateSpace and Kindle. Russ Crowley, a
freelance technical author and Word template consultant, offers easy
publishing using versions of Word from 2007 on. The book is heavily
illustrated with helpful screenshots, and there's online support from
him at Red Dragon Publishing.
Order the book from
http://www.1clickbookcreation.com.

A blog which discusses the problems with
Author Solutions (owned by Penguin) and how to control your book's
future without succumbing to scams: The
Value of Control by David Gaughran. Don't be mislead by
affiliations with top brand names. Penguin Random House owns the
worlds largest vanity press  Author Solutions 
which is currently subject to a class action for deceptive business
practices, breach of contract, unjust enrichment, and violation of
business statutes in California, New York, and Colorado. Author
Solutions and its parent company, Abbott Press, were also listed as a
"Writer's Digest Company" until spring, 2014.

Choosing
A Self Publishing Service 2014: The Alliance of Independent Authors Guide,
compiled by the Watchdog team at The Alliance of Independent
Authors, draws on recommendations from ALLi members, warnings from
their Watchdog Services, other community word-of-mouth and in-depth
research, comparing the most significant self-publishing services --
from single service suppliers to package providers; from large big
brand names to smaller sole traders; from off-the shelf providers to
bespoke services. The guide evaluates these players, compares one to
the other, tells you what they do and dont do, what they charge
and for what. Offerings are categorized, prices examined, royalty
structures broken down, terms and conditions trawled, small print
scrutinized, and claims checked against the experience of real-life
authors who have actually used these services. Using these twenty
examples, the guide shows you how to do such a comparison yourself:
the good and bad signs to look for, the questions to ask. The aim is
to demonstrate all the options you are likely to encounter and show
which services are doing a good job  and why you might avoid
others. Most importantly, in a landscape where things change rapidly,
the Guide provides the criteria by which you can evaluate any author
service. This is updated annually by ALLi's Watchdog team, so all the
information is bang up-to-date.

Publish Your Book, Proven Strategies and
Resources for the Enterprising Author (Allworth Press,
2012) is the 35th book from
Patricia Fry. Patricia's previous books include The Right Way
to Write, Publish and Sell Your Book, A Writers Guide to
Magazine Articles for Book Promotion and Profit, and Over 75
Good Ideas for Promoting Your Book. I've contributed to a couple
of these, including her other 2012 title from Allworth: Talk
Up Your Book, How to Sell Your Book Through Public Speaking,
Interviews, Signings, Festivals, Conferences and More. Also check
Patricia's excellent blog at: www.matilijapress.com/publishingblog
Patricia, the Executive Director of SPAWN (Small Publishers, Artists
and Writers Network), a networking organization which she helped form
in 1996, is also an excellent publishing consultant.

The Indie Authors Guide to Publishing Ebooks,
by Gary McLaren, publisher of two popular newsletters, Worldwide
Freelance Writer and Publish Your Own Ebooks. Full
description HERE.

The Well-Fed Writer
(updated) and The Well-Fed Self-Publisher by
Peter Bowerman.Read reviews HERE
and HERE.

Publishize: How to
Quickly and Affordably Self-Publish a Book That Promotes Your
Expertise, by Susan Daffron, a hands-on guidebook for entrepreneurs
who want to add a new revenue stream to their business. Read the
table of contents and some sample pages at: www.logicalexpressions.com.

Angela Hoy, of WritersWeekly.com and BookLocker.com, provides
comparisons of how many books you need to sell to recoup your
investment if you use any of the popular POD publishers. Read it HERE.

DOES YOUR EBOOK DESERVE AN AWARD?I served as a judge in Dan Poynter's first Global EBook Awards,
and the program was so successful it is continuing this year. This
is a way to get recognition for your ebook, with significant
publicity on the Global Ebook site and the ability to use
certificates and award seals on your books and website. Check it out HERE.

POD PUBLISHING COMPANIES I RECOMMEND:

CANADIAN: Five
Rivers Publishing is an independent publisher of fiction and
non-fiction, giving voice to new and established Canadian authors.
They pay royalties of 10% of retail price on print, 50% of net
proceeds on digital.

Baton Press: is a
small publishing house that offers new authors an easy bridge between
a manuscript and a completed book. By using print-on-demand
technology, they offer economical set-up fees and a fair percentage
of return on sales. Owner Bob Barclay welcomes submissions on any
topic. Bob will also handle just cover design and formatting if you
want to take your book to a local printer.

U.S.: BookLocker produces
beautiful books for self-publishers. You can obtain your own ISBN or
let them assign one (no charge). They format for a very reasonable
cost, print via Lightning Source (the standard in the industry), and
distribute via Ingram. Prices are among the most reasonable in the field.

If you're self-publishing, you need a professional designer for
your cover (front, spine and back, properly layered and ready to
print) as well as for the interior, in digital format, ready to go to
the printer as well as to ebook outlets. I recommend Mike O'Reilly,
who has been a friend for many years. Contact him HERE.

Another option for self-publishers is particularly helpful for
first-time authors. Foboko is an
online tool that allows anyone to write, design, and publish e-books.
There's no charge to use their Publishing Wizard software, to access
the community, or to publish your book. They offer free distribution
via Free-eBooks.net, which attracts over 1,000,000, unique visitors
every month to their online library. Developed by Paradise Publishers
in Nevada, the company appears to be a viable option for those who
want to "test-drive" a book, obtain comments and assistance
from other authors, and earn a bit of revenue via advertising posted
around their eBook.

Order free PDF reports on writing-related subjects,
including correct manuscript format, how to form and run a critique
circle, how to identify weak writing and repair it, self-publishing
versus traditional publishing, and much more. Go to http://zebraeditor.com/free_reports.shtml

Marquis
specializes in short and medium run book printing in Canada. They
have two printing plants, with more than 115 employees dedicated
exclusively to book production. They offer formatting and
editing for all types of work, web press capabilities and sheetfed
presses, with book binding in-house, including perfect binding,
saddle stitching, spiral binding, wire-O, and case bound.

Friesens
Corporation is North Americas premier book, yearbook and
packaging manufacturer, providing publishers, self-publishers,
institutions, businesses and schools with quality, in-house services
at a 250,000 sq. ft. state of the-art production facility. They're
located in Altona, Manitoba, and have been in business since 1933.
But there have been complaints about their publishing arm, so
consider using them just for printing.

Brooke Broadbent will write your family stories or help you do it,
write articles about history and family stories, review family
history books and articles, and provide free resources to help you
research and write family stories. His website is: www.telling-family-tales.com

Volunteer Lawyers
for the Arts offers pro bono legal services to low-income artists
and nonprofit arts organizations. VLA's other services and programs
are open to the entire arts community. Chapters in most U.S. states.

Negotiating a Book Contract:
A Guide for Authors, Agents and Lawyers is the third book by Mark
L. Levine, a New York lawyer and recognized authority on book
publishing contracts. He currently writes the Contracts Q&A
column for the Authors Guild Bulletin. The book's website,

http://www.bookcontracts.com/
contains answers to some frequently-asked questions, book ordering
information, and a list of individual chapters, which can be
purchased separately.

Barbara Florio Graham will review your publishing contract,
commenting on the contract terms, flagging problems, suggesting
modifications, and letting you know if there are any clauses that you
should refer to a lawyer. Barbara is not a lawyer, and she is not
offering legal services. But she's had sufficient experience (having
worked as a law clerk) to understand legal language, and has
considerable expertise in contract terms and copyright. A full
explanation of this service can be found HERE.

Independent Book Reviewers:

Susan Daffron has put together an extensive list of
independent book reviewers. All of the reviewers in this guide accept
small press books, and all of them review books for free. The guide
lists their likes, dislikes, contact information, website
information, etc. Go to:http://www.stepbystepselfpublishing.net/

(Self-publishing guru Dan Poynter, whose seminars
have been featured on CNN, is a leading authority on self-publishing.
His newsletter suspeneded publication when he died in 2015, but many
of his excellent resources are still available.

The sequel to Dan's popular title, The
Self-Publishing Manual, contains new techniques to write your book
faster, new technology to publish it for less, new ways to distribute
your book more economically, ways to have fun promoting it and how to
profit from your investment by cutting out all of publishings
gatekeepers in the middle. Available now as an eBook in ten different
formats. $7.97 from http://www.smashwords.com/books/view/607
and a printed book for $14.95 from Dan's website. See the
cover and blurb HERE.

Dan's colleage continues to offer the free
newsletter, The Savvy Self-Publisher, with tips and tricks to
help the streetwise author publish a book quickly and economically --
and to promote it more effectively. It contains success stories of
self-publishers in action, and a treasure trove of tools to help you
reach more readers. http://www.u-publish.com/monthly.htm

www.smashwords.com
Smashwords has reached an agreement with Shortcovers to sell their
ebooks. This will give their authors and publishers access to readers
in 189 countries. Smashwords authors and publishers receive
royalties of 46.75 percent of the digital list price. Their books are
now distributed to Barnes & Noble and many e-book retailers, such
as the Apple iBookstore, Aldiko, Stanza, Kobo and Sony. For a helpful
article on how to use Smashwords effectively, click HERE.
Note that Smashwords does not provide paid services of any
kind. Instead, they offer a free download which provides
guidance on how to prepare your book for quality ebook conversion to
various formats. It's very important to do this in Word.

www.bookmarket.com(John Kremer, author of 1001 Ways to Market Your
Books). John also has new e-book, Book Marketing 105: Choosing
a Book Distribution, which includes information on 30 book
distributors, 4 library distributors, 89 book publishers who also
distribute for other publishers, 3 sales representatives to the
chains, 27 bookstore wholesalers, 34 library wholesalers, and 23 Spanish-language
wholesalers, plus a sample book distribution contract. Ebook
download, $30.00.

www.span.net(Self Publishers Association of North America) The
new owner, Brian Jud, has officially changed the name from SPAN to
the Association of Authors and Publishers for Special Sales (AAPSS --
pronounced apps). www.bookaapss.org<http://www.bookaaps.org/

You can download a free database of POD publishers HERE.
For nearly a decade, Dehanna has been one of the top trusted sources
for POD information and the POD Database has been recommended by Dan
Poynter, U-Publish, Writers Digest, Preditors & Editors,
Published.com, Writer's Weekly and many other great Writing Sites as
well as recognized as a Top 101 Best Web Site for Writers.

Bibliocrunch.com - an online
resource connecting writers with the publishing professionals they need,
such as editors, graphic designers and formatters.

Between the Lines, a free writers' e-zine brought
to you by The
Editorial Department, a 26-year-old freelance editorial firm with
14 editors on staff who provide both developmental consultation and
sentence-level editing of nearly all genres of fiction and nonfiction
and also a team of dedicated support staff to help our unagented
authors find representation for their work.

The
Book Designer offers a free newsletter, and when you subscribe
you will receive a copyright report specifically for
publishers Joel Friedlander, proprietor of Marin
Bookworks, offers great tips in his newsletter. Here's a delightful
humor piece (with serious information) Joel posted recently.
Click HERE

www.matilijapress.com
books by Patricia Fry, including The Right Way to Write,
Publish and Sell Your Book, A Writers Guide to Magazine
Articles for Book Promotion and Profit, and Over 75 Good Ideas
for Promoting Your Book. Also check Patricia's excellent blog
at: www.matilijapress.com/publishingblog Patricia is also
an excellent publishing consultant.

The Thrifty Authors Guide to Launching
Your Book Without Losing Your Mind (Comfort
Publishing) is the first in a series by author and international
speaker Gail Martin. She explains everything a new author needs to
know about marketing, and provides a helpful checklist beginning with
six months before launch and carrying on to six months afterwards,
when most authors don't realize they still have work to do if the
book is going to succeed. She includes budgeting, charts, and tips
from other published authors at the end of each of the 20 chapters.
Other books in this series will cover social media, blogging, book
tours, and other promotional efforts. Check out Gail's home study
course, The Solopreneur Survival Guide, and her e-books, 154
Power-Packed PR and Marketing Tips, and Passion, Profit and
Partnership: Entrepreneur Success Strategies. The owner of Dreamspinner
Communications, Gail offers a free newsletter and podcasts of
phone interviews with successful authors and entrepreneurs.
Mini-review HERE.

Sigrid
Macdonald is an author, book coach, copy editor, substantive
editor and manuscript evaluator. Her book, Be Your Own Editor,
is available from Lulu,
Amazon and Barnes & Noble.

Maria Carlton is a award-winning business and
publishing coach, pro-speaker, author and book shepherd. Her site is
full of useful information. Go to: www.marukibooks.com

There are about a dozen
literary agencies in Canada. One I can recommend is PSLiterary.com
Carly Watters is a hands-on agent that develops proposals and
manuscripts with attention to detail and the relevant markets.
PSLAs mission is to manage authors literary brands for
their entire career. See Carly's own website and read her blog at: http://carlywatters.com/

http://www.writersunion.ca/
(The Writers' Union of Canada, which publishes a number of helpful
booklets, including Anthology Rates and Contracts, Author and
Literary Agent, and New Technologies, which includes information on
e-books and print-on-demand publishing). TWUC also publishes
the Writers' Guide to Canadian Publishers, a list of publishers who
currently accept unsolicited manuscripts, and a Contracts Self-Help
Package, which inlcudes a Model Trade Book Contract and Help Yourself
to a Better Contract.

SPAWN
sponsors the Self-Publishers Online Conference (SPOC), held every
spring. The three-day event will feature 15 speakers and a virtual
exhibit hall. Attending the conference live is free, and SPAWN
members will get discounts on the recordings. Learn more at the SPOC
site: http://www.SelfPublishersOnlineConference.com

The Fine Print of Self-Publishing by
Mark Levine. This book compares many of the popular POD and
so-called "self-publishing" options, providing clear
information about what each actually costsand
how much profit they actually offer authors. Mark's website contains
many resources and services for business, writers, artists, and
musicians: www.clickindustries.com.
Read Bobbi's review HERE.

Publishing Possibilities, 8 Steps to Understanding Your
Options, and Choosing the Best Path for Your Book, by Cheryl
Pickett (Brighter Day Publishing, 2009) http://www.publishinganswers.com,
reviewed by Patricia Fry. Publishing Possibilities is a
pretty complete 8-step program designed to help you understand your
publishing options and choose the right one for your particular
manuscript. The author offers this through brief, succinct,
uncluttered chapters and worksheets. To read the full
review of Publishing Possibilities, go to http://www.spawn.org/books/books_pub_publishingpossibilities.htm.

Patricia Fry is a seasoned editor who can also guide you through
the publishing process. Contact her at PLFry620@yahoo.com or through
her website at http://www.matilijapress.com/consulting.html.
You'll also find other resources for self-publishers
on Patricia's site, including a new 27-page ebook called The
Author's Repair Kit: Heal Your Publishing Mistakes and Breathe New
Life Into Your Book

Create a billboard containing a quote, your website URL, or
anything else you want to highlight on your website or on social
media: http://recitethis.com/

BOOK PROMOTION & PUBLICITY

www.matilijapress.com
books by Patricia Fry, including The Right Way to Write,
Publish and Sell Your Book, A Writers Guide to Magazine
Articles for Book Promotion and Profit, and Over 75 Good Ideas
for Promoting Your Book. Also check Patricia's excellent blog
at: www.matilijapress.com/publishingblog

www.thepublicityhound.com
Joan Stewart publishes a terrific free newsletter and offers many
free booklets and resources on her website. Some of the key resources
for book publishers that follow have been gleaned from her tips. All
of her paid materials are well worth the cost.

Shel Horowitz prepares detailed marketing plans,
customized to suit each individual book project. He shared one of
these with me, and it's excellent. He also offers a Book Marketing
Checklist which asks all the right questions. Reach him via www.principledprofits.com

Publishize: How to Quickly and Affordably
Self-Publish a Book That Promotes Your Expertise, by Susan
Daffron, a hands-on guidebook for entrepreneurs who want to add a new
revenue stream to their business. Read the table of contents and some
sample pages at:www.logicalexpressions.com.

If your book would make a great gift,
consider purchasing The Gift List for Holidays, which includes
national and regional magazines, the top 250 newspapers, major wire
and news services, and national television. $349. from http://www.giftlistmedia.com

DOES YOUR EBOOK DESERVE AN AWARD?I served as a judge in Dan Poynter's first Global EBook Awards,
and the program was so successful it is continuing this year. This
is a way to get recognition for your ebook, with significant
publicity on the Global Ebook site and the ability to use
certificates and award seals on your books and website. Check it out HERE.

LIBRARY DIRECTORIES

Selling Your Book to Librariesby
Dana Lynn Smith, the Savvy
Bookmarketer and the Directory of Top U.S. Libraries (detailed
description HERE).

Download a PDF Measuring Tool designed by Marko
Mikulich to help authors build their self-published Book. The tool is
cut out of an 8.5x11-in paper sheet and contains five different
measuring rulers (inches, millimeters/centimeters, pica), type-sizing
tool for determining lettering size from 6 to 72-points, decimal-fraction
equivalent conversion, line widths, etc. This tool is from the
Appendix of the new book, ILLUSTRATE YOUR SELF-PUBLISHED BOOK; The
Author's Guide for Drawing, Photography, Typesetting & Production.
http://www.erdc.com/meas-tool.pdf

BEFORE YOU CONSIDER PRINT-ON-DEMAND OR INTERNET-BASED
SERVICES, PLEASE CLICK
HERE

A NOTE RE DISTRIBUTION:Ingram and Baker & Taylor
are WHOLESALERS, not distributors. All they do is provide a way for
booksellers to order the books. A distributor actively markets the
books they represent to those booksellers, and most demand a higher
discount--usually 65-75%.